The Autry Lab
Our laboratory is focused on uncovering and dissecting neural circuits that control social behaviors and understanding how these circuits are regulated under physiological and pathological conditions. Specifically, we study parental behavior which is essential for the health and survival of offspring, as well as infant-directed aggression and other behaviors associated with parenting. The research questions center around (1) how stress affects the function of circuits controlling parental behaviors (2) how circuits that mediate stress responses interact over time and (3) how stress circuits impact feeding behavior and body composition, particularly in lactating females.
Research
Neural mechanisms of parental behavior
Circuit tracing
Optogenetics
In vivo recording
Lab Members
Daljit Kaur
Graduate Student
Proudly from the beautiful PNW town of Kent, WA in the Greater Seattle Area (go Seahawks!), Daljit moved to New York in 2016 to attend New York University, where she completed her Bachelor of Science in Neural Science in 2020. She then worked as a laboratory manager in the lab of Christine Constantinople at NYU and studied the modulation of the reward and learning pathways by the estrous cycle in female rats. Daljit begun her PhD at Einstein in 2023 and joined the lab of Anita Autry. Currently, Daljit is studying neural circuitry changes related to maternal behaviors, the influence of maternal separation on these circuits in mice dams, and the impact of BDNF on paternal behaviors in male mice. Outside of the lab, Daljit enjoys traveling, community service and outreach, and finding all the best dessert spots in the city.
Jade Rhoads
Graduate Student
Jade is from Franklin, PA. She received her BA in Psychology and her BS in Neuroscience from Thiel College. During her PhD, Jade aims to understand the role of the neuropeptide, Urocortin 3, in the lateral septum in mice with PTSD. In Jade’s free time, she enjoys spending time with her cat, Button, and exploring the city any chance she gets.
Tushar Arora, Ph.D
Postdoc
Tushar earned his Ph.D. at the National Brain Research Centre in India, where he received formal training in molecular and cellular neuroscience. For his postdoc, Tushar transitioned to circuits and systems neuroscience, where he is exploring the neural circuits that drive flexible social behavior utilizing anatomical methods, in-vivo recordings, optogenetics, and advanced machine learning tools for automated behavioral analysis. Tushar is an outdoor enthusiast who enjoys running, hiking, and playing soccer. If he wasn’t a researcher, he’d probably be an athlete!
Carlos Rivero Quiles, Ph.D
Postdoc
Originally from the Isle of Enchantment, Carlos hails from the town of Carolina, Puerto Rico. He earned his BS in Integrative Biology and his PhD in Physiology from the University of Puerto Rico, where he researched the effects of anabolic steroids and cocaine on addictive behaviors and the reproductive systems of female rats. Since joining the Autry lab in 2022, he has been studying the effects of corticosterone on maternal behavior and offspring outcomes. An avid reader and history buff, Carlos enjoys visiting the city’s many museums and parks in his free time.
Lab Alumni
Former Postdocs:
-
Giovanni Podda, PhD
​
Former Graduate Students:
-
Brenda Abdelmesih, PhD
-
Ilaria Carta, PhD
-
Victoria Sedwick, PhD
​
Former Technicians:
-
Robyn Anderson
Donate to our Kernls project
Untangling how stress disrupts maternal brain communication and mental health
Publications
​
Autry, A.E., Wu, Z., Kohl, J., Bambah-Mukku, D., Rubinstein, N.D., Marin-Rodriguez, B., Carta, I., Sedwick, V., Dulac, C. (forthcoming). Perifornical area Urocortin-3 Neurons Promote Infant-Directed Neglect and Aggression. bioRXiv.
​
Kim, J.W., Autry, A.E., Na, E., Adachi, M., Bjorkholm, C., Kavalali, E.T., Monteggia, L.M. (forthcoming) MeCP2 Phosphorylation forms a switch for transition from rapid to sustained antidepressant responses. Nature Neuroscience, Accepted.
​
Kohl, J., Babayan, B. M., Rubinstein, N.D., Autry, A. E., Marin-Rodriguez, B., Kapoor, V., Miyamaishi, K., Zweifel, L. S., Luo, L., Uchida, N., Dulac, C. (2018). Functional circuit architecture underlying parental behavior. Nature, 556(7701): 326–331.
​
Kohl, J.K.*, Autry A.E.*, Dulac, C. (2017). The Neurobiology of Parenting: A Neural Circuit Perspective. Bioessays, 39(1) 1-11.
​
Adachi, M.*, Autry, A.E.*, Maghoub, M., Suzuki, K., Monteggia, L.M. (2017). TrkB Signaling in Dorsal Raphe Nucleus is Essential for Antidepressant Efficacy and Normal Aggression Behavior. Neuropsychopharmacology, 42(4) 886-894.
​
Autry, A.E. (2016). Neurobiology of Chronic Social Defeat Stress: Role of Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor Signaling in the Nucleus Accumbens. Biological Psychiatry, 80(6) 39-40.
​
Morris, M.J., Na, E.S., Autry, A.E., Monteggia, L.M. (2016). Impact of DNMT1 and DNMT3a forebrain knockout on depressive- and anxiety like behavior in mice. Neurobiology of Learning and Memory, 135; 139-145.
​
Renier, N., Adams, E., Kirst, C., Wu, Z., Azevedo, R., Kohl, J., Autry, A.E., Kadiri, L., Venkataraju, K.U., Zhou, Y., Wang, V.X., Tang, C.Y., Olsen, O., Dulac, C., Osten, P., Tessier-Lavigne, M. (2016). Mapping of brain activity by automated volume analysis of immediate early genes. Cell, 165 (7) 1-14.
​
Wu, Z., Autry, A.E., Bergan, J.F., Watabe-Uchida, M., Dulac, C.G. (2014). Galanin neurons in the medial preoptic area govern parental behavior. Nature, 509 (7500) 325-330.
Nosyreva, E., Autry, A.E., Kavalali, E.T., Monteggia, L.M. (2014). Age dependence of the rapid antidepressant and synaptic effects of acute NMDA receptor blockade. Frontiers in Molecular Neuroscience, 94; 1-7.
​
Nosyreva, E., Szabla, K., Autry, A.E., Ryazanov, A.G., Monteggia, L.M., Kavalali, E.T. (2013). Acute suppression of spontaneous neurotransmission drives synaptic potentiation. Journal of Neuroscience, 33(16) 6990-7002.
​
Benekareddy, M., Nair, A.R., Dias, B.G., Suri, D., Autry, A.E., Monteggia, L.M., Vaidya, V.A. (2013). Induction of the plasticity-associated immediate early gene Arc by stress and hallucinogens: role of brain-derived neurotrophic factor. International Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology, 16(2) 405-15.
​
Autry, A. E., Monteggia, L.M. (2012). Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor and Neuropsychiatric Illness. Pharmacological Reviews, 64(2) 238-58.
​
Na, E.S., Nelson, E.D., Adachi, M., Autry, A.E., Maghoub, M.A., Kavalali, E.T., Monteggia, L.M. (2012). A mouse model for MeCP2 duplication syndrome: MeCP2 overexpression impairs learning and memory and synaptic transmission. Journal of Neuroscience, 32(9) 3109-17.
​
Autry, A.E., Adachi, M., Nosyreva, E., Na, E., Los, M.F., Cheng, P., Kavalali, E.T., Monteggia, L.M. (2011). NMDA Receptor Blockade at Rest Desuppresses Protein Translation and Triggers Rapid Behavioural Antidepressant Responses. Nature, 475(7354) 91-5.
Autry, A. E., Monteggia, L.M. (2009). Epigenetics and Suicide. Biological Psychiatry, 66(9) 812-3.
Autry, A.E., Adachi, M., Cheng, P., Monteggia, L.M. (2009) Gender-specific impact of brain-derived neurotrophic factor signaling on stress-induced depression-like behavior. Biological Psychiatry, 66(1) 84- 90.
​
Adachi, M., Autry A.E., Covington, H.E., Monteggia, L.M. (2009). MeCP2-mediated transcription repression in the basolateral amygdala may underlie heightened anxiety in a mouse model of Rett Syndrome. Journal of Neuroscience, 29(13) 4218-27.
​
Adachi, M., Barrot, M., Autry, A.E., Theobald, D., Monteggia, L.M. (2008). Selective loss of brain-derived neurotrophic factor in the dentate gyrus attenuates antidepressant efficacy. Biological Psychiatry, 63(7) 642-9.
​
Autry, A. E., Grillo, C.A., Piroli, G. G., Rothstein, J.D., McEwen, B.S., Reagan, L.P. (2006). Glucocorticoid regulation of glutamate transporter isoform expression in the rat hippocampus. Neuroendocrinology, 83(5-6) 371-9.
